


Seeking the Silver

by thequidditchpitch_archivist



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Heterosexual Sex, Post-War, Romance, The Quidditch Pitch: Erotic Couplings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-05-06
Updated: 2008-05-06
Packaged: 2018-10-26 12:42:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10786959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thequidditchpitch_archivist/pseuds/thequidditchpitch_archivist
Summary: Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley are happy with their lives.  They’re both successful and content with where they are going.  Fate, however, has very different ideas. ‘How could someone you’d thought you’d never have these kinds of feelings for work their way so thoroughly into your life that you were beside yourself when they were gone?’





	Seeking the Silver

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).

Harry Potter whistled as he walked up the short lane to the Burrow.  It was such a beautiful spring day that he’d been happy to Apparate a short distance away and enjoy the crisp, clean country air as he ambled up the dusty road.  It had been several days since he’d seen Ron, Hermione or anyone from his adoptive family.  The case he’d been working up until yesterday evening had required most of his attention.  He’d been thrilled when they’d found the missing young woman and taken her back to be with her family.  Not all cases ended so well and Harry had decided to celebrate a bit.  It had been late by the time his Auror team had returned to the Ministry, so he’d opted to grab some Chinese take away and a glass of Firewhiskey.  The food and drink had gone perfectly with the action film he’d been saving to watch. 

That was the reason it was almost noon when Harry woke and found an urgent message from Ron asking him to come to the Burrow.  Now, usually, Harry would be more worked up over such a summons.  However, the fact that it was Ron and not Hermione who had written it might have meant a few things.  One, Ron was in the doghouse with his beloved fiancé and was hiding out at the Burrow, needing Harry to assist his repentance.  Two, the ‘emergency’ was really something minor that would amuse Harry, no doubt, and that Ron just didn’t want to admit to Hermione he’d done something that Harry needed to help fix. 

On the whole, Harry hadn’t seen any clues to point to anything extremely urgent about the message that Pigwideon had delivered.  So, he’d taken a shower and even shaved to make himself more presentable.  He’d then donned his most comfortable jeans; it was his day off, after all. 

The exterior of the Burrow seemed to be no worse than the last time he’d seen it, so Harry continued on in.  His smile soon slipped from his face when he saw the sullen faces surrounding the table.  Ron, Charlie and George started when he entered and they all winced when a rather large crash sounded from upstairs. 

“Bloody hell,” Harry cried.  He’d immediately crouched and pulled his wand, his eyes widened when the others simply stayed sitting. 

“It’s only Ginny, mate,” Ron mumbled and Harry searched the other faces for confirmation before sighing and slipping his wand away. 

Harry took a seat and studied each face.  All was silent except for the crashes and yelling from upstairs which Harry couldn’t make out more than an occasional word.  It made Ginny’s brothers wince though. 

“What happened to your eye, mate?” Harry asked as he took in the slightly purple ring surrounding his friend’s left eye.  Ron lifted a finger and gently touched his eye. 

“Ginny did that too,” George filled Harry in with a slight grin. 

Harry raised both eyebrows.  In all his years with the Weasley family he’d seen Ginny mad a few times but rarely enough to hit someone. 

“What’d you say to her?” Harry asked with a chuckle. 

Ron opened his mouth to answer but a rather loud crash of what sounded like glass echoed through the house.  Hermione, wiping her brow and breathing rather heavily, appeared down the stairs. 

“Was that glass?” Charlie asked delicately. 

Hermione rolled her eyes and sat next to Ron after giving Harry a rather embarrassed smile.  “Yes,” she said.  “I conjured a box of plates for her to throw.  I just know when she calms down she’ll regret ruining some of her nicer things.  I thought it best to prevent that from happening.” 

“You willingly gave her something to destroy?” Charlie burst out. 

Hermione nodded and shrugged.  “Molly has her wand, thank heavens.”  Harry’s eyebrow’s rose in shock.  Anyone close enough to take Ginny’s wand from her was likely to come out the worse for wear.  Ginny was known as a formidable witch.  “Besides, for some people there’s just nothing quite as satisfying as seeing glass shatter.” 

Harry stared at his oldest friends in horrified awe.  Was everyone here going completely barmy?  Why was Ginny hurting others and destroying things, and why was no one doing anything to stop her? 

“So,” he said after hearing another loud crash, “is anyone planning to enlighten me?” 

They all looked at Ron who sighed and glanced up at him.  Harry had a hard time not chuckling at the darkening purple bruise that Ron’s sister had inflicted.  If he knew Ginny, and ten years of friendship should attest to that, Ron probably had it coming. 

“Well, it all started this morning.  See, Hermione and I came over for breakfast.  Mum wanted to talk about the wedding plans.”  Harry nodded for him to continue.  “And then Ginny came down.” 

They all winced again as a door slammed and Molly’s yelling could be heard again over the top of her daughter’s ranting. 

“Then this owl showed up,” George put in, “from Gringotts.” 

Harry nodded for him to continue but he just glanced at Ron who looked quickly away, his ears darkening red. 

“An owl from Gringotts,” Harry confirmed, not completely sure where this was leading.  Everyone looked around and Harry huffed.  “And?!?”  He was about to demand an explanation from Hermione when the back door opened and a rather defeated looking Arthur and Bill walked in. 

Charlie stood immediately and gave his chair to his father.  “I’m going to take it by the looks on your faces that you didn’t have any success.” 

Arthur only scowled at the table and Bill sighed, glancing over at Harry and then looking away.  Harry, once again, felt like there was something key he was missing.  “It’s ironclad,” Bill stated. 

”Bugger,” George hissed out.  Mr. Weasley raised his face to scold his son but sighed and looked away instead, possibly thinking that the word may have fit the situation. 

“Will somebody please tell me what’s going on?” Harry demanded, flinching when he realized how loud his tone was.  The noise from above stopped suddenly and they all looked up. 

“…Harry bleeding Potter…”  Ginny’s voice now drifted down the stairs before Bill quickly pulled his wand and cast a silencing spell toward the rickety staircase. 

Harry narrowed his eyes at the group, his suspicions rising.  What would Ginny be screaming his name for?  Surely he couldn’t be messed up in anything… 

It was Hermione who finally answered after huffing at all the men in the room.  “Harry, Ginny received a letter from Gringotts this morning.  It stated that she was bound to an arranged marriage.” 

Harry sank into his seat and let his eyes flit back and forth.  Please tell me this is some colossal joke gone awry, he thought to himself.  However, George’s drawn face hinted at no amusement as it may have if this had been some prank. 

“You’re not joking, are you?” he managed to ask. 

“No, Harry,” Hermione shook her head.  “Supposedly, generations ago, the Weasley family was indebted to…well, to another wealthy pureblood family,” her eyes darted around the table and several of the occupants winced.  Harry furrowed his brow, mentally trying to process what she was saying.  “Apparently, the Weasley patriarch offered…this other family…the hand of their next born Weasley female to be wed to the heir of the…other family…the other patriarch accepted and a magical contract was forged.”  Hermione sighed and glanced up as the ceiling above them rumbled threateningly. 

“Ginny’s nearing her twentieth birthday and the contract needs to be fulfilled.” 

“No kidding?” Harry whispered with a hint of pleading to his voice.  “You’re serious, Hermione?” 

“Absolutely,” Bill confirmed.  “Dad and I’ve just been to the Ministry and then to Gringotts to see if we could get some kind of waiver or nullification.  The law that the contract was made under no longer exists, although the contract is still binding according to the Wizengamot.  Because the two families involved were both pureblood at the time, they don’t feel the need to meddle, they said.” 

“Bloody bureaucrats,” Charlie growled and scuffed his shoe along the floor. 

“Well,” Harry ruffled his hair, “what about this other family?  Have you contacted them?  Surely if they agree, the contract can be broken.  Or does it require some kind of dowry or something?”  An idea had just struck him and he spun on his heel to face Arthur. 

“Mr. Weasley, if it’s a matter of money…well, you know that I’ve got more than enough…I’d gladly give anything…” 

“Harry,” Arthur put up his hands in protest and a sad smile played on his face.  “I’m grateful, believe me.  But we’ve searched the entire law and there can be no buying our way out of it, as you’ve suggested.” 

Harry sighed and growled in frustration.  “So, we just have to let Ginny marry some…some git?!  There’s no justice in that!” 

“Harry-“  Hermione tried to interrupt but Harry was too incensed. 

“No, Hermione, I’m not going to let someone who’s like a sister to me be treated like some…some piece of meat.”  He began pacing, scowling at the floor, his mind racing to find a solution.  “Who is it?” he demanded.  “Please tell me it’s not Malfoy or some other Death Eater spawn.”  His heart began racing when they all looked away from him. “Ron,” he whispered.  “Please tell me it’s not Malfoy.” 

“It’s not Malfoy, mate,” Ron said in a low voice.  He raised his head and looked directly at Harry.  “It’s you.”

*** 

Ginny finally allowed herself to sink to her bed and let the tears come.  For two hours she’d yelled and screamed and thrown everything in sight.  But now the anger had fizzled into tears. 

Why did it always come down to this in her life?  Why was it always about him?  Harry-bleeding-Saviour-Of-The-World-Potter.  It had all started with that hideous crush she’d had on him when she was younger.  And then he’d saved her life and she’d forced herself to take him down off of the pedestal she’d put him on and really examine him.  That’s when the crush began to fade.  And over the years she’d determined that he would never return any affection that she offered, so she stopped putting it out for him to see.  Instead, she’d tucked it away and squashed it down so hard and deep that she’d been able to forget about it enough to move on with her life. 

At times, she’d allowed it out of its dark corner and allowed it to flourish-if only a bit, before forcing it back into obscurity.  There were a few times when she’d caught some hint that Harry might be thinking of her as more than his best mate’s sister, or perhaps even his own sister.  In her fifth year, she’d been seeing Dean Thomas at the time, Harry had seemed to begin hanging around her more.  He’d laughed at her jokes and she seemed to catch him watching her at times.  But then he’d never said anything, never done anything to take it further and she’d forced that part of her heart and mind to close down. 

Then again, just after the Final Battle, she’d run to him and hugged him tightly.  How could she not after her heart had nearly broken seeing him lying there dead in Hagrid’s massive arms?  And Harry had held the hug a moment longer than necessary.  And he seemed to take in a deep breath when she finally pulled back.  However, when he’d pulled away and then disappeared for two days, she’d savagely scolded herself and allowed herself to cry.  After all, she had the perfect excuse now to appear with red eyes and a puff face--her brother had just been killed after all. 

But here she was again, returned to the same position by the same man all over again.  It really didn’t matter that Harry was, obviously, completely ignorant that he was doing it.  In her mind and heart, the same wizard was responsible for most of the heartache in her life.  In this situation, it definitely wasn’t Harry’s fault, but years of regrets and repressed feelings made him an easy source to blame. 

“It’s not fair,” she mumbled out and her mother’s strong arms wrapped around her shoulder. 

“No, it isn’t, love.” 

“How can they do this to me?  I’ve worked so hard to get past this…to get past him and then we’re pushed back together again.”  She cried even harder and her mother wiped at her own tears. 

“I wish there was something I could say, Ginny-girl.  Something I could do to take the pain away.  You know, though, it could be much-“ 

“Please don’t tell me it could be worse,” Ginny sighed.  “Believe me, I know it could.  But I don’t want to think about that right now.  Right now there’s nothing worse than being bonded to…that git…who won’t ever be able to make me happy and who I won’t be able to make happy.  Our lives will be miserable and there’s nothing either of us can do about it.” 

“Oh, Ginny,” Molly sighed and smoothed her daughter’s hair. 

“We should just let the consequences happen,” she mumbled, mostly to herself. 

“Ginevra Weasely!”  Her mother screamed and pulled away violently, grabbing her shoulders.  “Don’t ever let me hear you say that!” 

“Well, it’s true, mum,” Ginny said stoically.  “Dying certainly can’t be worse than living with someone who despises you day after day.” 

“Harry does not despise you,” Molly shook her shoulders just a bit.  “He loves you.” 

Ginny scoffed.  “No, he pities me.  And, you know, if he actually does agree to this…he’ll only be doing it because he thinks he owes so much to our family.  I’ll be a bride of pity.”  Her anger was returning just a bit and she grabbed her pillow and hugged it to her hard.  “Nothing could be worse than that.” 

“Let me tell you something,” Molly scolded, “losing a child is like hell on earth.”  Ginny winced as she internally groaned.  She’d obviously not thought about her words before she’d said them and the reaction her mother was having was entirely justified.  “And I won’t do it again, young lady, just to satisfy your pride.  Not when it can be avoided.  So, I don’t care if Harry will accept this out of honor or pity or whatever other ulterior motives your little head can come up with.  If he does accept it, I’ll be indebted to him for my entire life.” 

She suddenly found herself in one of the tightest hugs she could ever remember receiving.  “Please don’t do that to me, Ginny—don’t do it to your brothers or your father…or Harry even.” 

A feeling of resignation began to settle on her as she sat there in her mother’s protective arms.  The bitterness of the situation was still distasteful but maybe, just maybe, there was a right thing to do here.  That feeling, however, dissipated when she heard Harry’s yells echoing up through the floor.

*** 

“M-me?!?” Harry managed to stammer out as he groped blindly for a chair.  Bill stood abruptly and guided Harry’s weaving frame into the chair he had just occupied.  He felt a strange mixture of relief and lightheadedness along with a healthy dose of disbelief. 

“You,” Hermione confirmed.  “I’m sorry, Harry.  I’m actually surprised that you didn’t know about this already.  Surely there should have been something in your Gringotts paperwork.” 

Harry let his eyes drift down to the table, searching his mind for anything that would have hinted at something this large. 

“You did read it all, didn’t you?” Hermione half-asked, half-scolded.  His burning face must have given the answer away.  “Oh, Harry.” 

“It’s a lot of papers, Hermione,” he defended, although even to him it sounded rather weak.  “You think that I would have known about this and conveniently forgot to mention it?” 

“Harry-“ 

“No, Ron,” Harry yelled.  “It’s not like this is a good thing for me, right?  I mean, I’m not ready to get married…I’m barely ready to date!” 

George sniggered only to be silenced by Bill’s swat to the back of his head. 

“Bloody hell,” Harry mumbled as he pushed back from the table and settled his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands.  He tried to breath deep, afraid of passing out if he didn’t.  “What if…why…”  His questions ended when he realized he didn’t know exactly what to ask. 

“You said ironclad?” he finally mumbled down to the floor. 

“I did,” Bill said. 

“What if I refuse?” Harry asked, keeping his head down so as not to face any disappointment he might see.  “What if she…doesn’t want that?” 

Hermione cleared her throat.  “There is no refusing, Harry,” she said in her careful tone that meant to Harry that she’d had the same questions and had researched it herself.  “The contract is binding.  If either of you refuse, then you both suffer the consequences.” 

Harry raised his head and peered at her above his glasses and through his black fringe when she didn’t continue.  She quickly looked away. 

“You both die, Harry,” she said in a soft voice. 

“So, Potter,” Charlie growled, “You’re going to do it.  You’re going to march right up there and—“ 

He didn’t continue, however, as Mr. Weasley stood and slammed his hand down on the table. 

“That’s enough,” he roared.  When his sons were sufficiently cowed, he turned to Harry and laid a hand on his shoulder.  “This is obviously a surprise to you as well, Harry.  And trust me when I say that none of us blames you for this.  It’s likely that any paperwork you may have had regarding this would have been generations old and almost impossible to understand, had you even been able to find it.  Molly and I-“  He cleared his throat here and Harry looked up at him to find more emotion than he could remember seeing for quite some time on the aging face.  “We wish it had been another way, Harry—something that you and Ginny had chosen, instead of being forced on you both, but…well, we just want you to know that we trust the two of you and…if it had to be anyone…”  He let his voice trail out and Harry stared at him before nodding his understanding. 

He gave one last glance at Ron before staring up at the ceiling where Ginny’s tirade had gone silent. 

“I need some air,” he finally mumbled out and stumbled from the room, not completely sure where he was going.


End file.
